SOUTH WHITTIER – John Adams, 81, was looking for a way to get out of the house when family members are working and can’t give him a ride.

Now, a new shuttle service for South Whittier residents can take him to the bank and post office on weekdays and Saturdays.

And the fare is free because he’s a senior.

“This is something to get him out of the house even if he just rides the bus in a circle,” his daughter Cindy Butterfield, 52, said at Saturday’s launch of the new shuttle at the South Whittier Community Resource Center.

“We’re going to take it with him one day next week to make sure he knows where all the spots are,” Butterfield said.

The inaugural ride of the South Whittier Shuttle was taken Saturday by residents and Los Angeles County Supervisors Gloria Molina and Don Knabe, and Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Lakewood.

Los Angeles County Supervisors approved an $811,225 contract with Southland Transit Inc. in December to operate the shuttle. Sanchez helped get a federal transit grant for two new clean-air buses that will debut in July.

“Everybody can’t have a library or community center in their back yard, so everybody needs mobility,” Molina said. “A woman just told me: `Finally I have transportation.’ But she said it won’t reach her house.”

Molina said that if the shuttle is successful, the route will expand.

For now, two white vans will make 35 stops on an 11-mile route at places including parks, Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital and shopping areas between Whittwood Town Center and Sorensen Park from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays.

The two-way shuttle service makes connections to MTA transit lines and the county-operated Los Nietos Shuttle.

While the stops are marked with plain white “Bus Stop” signs, a community art commission will work with a local artist to design graphics for the new buses and bus signs that will appear in July.

“This is an exciting day for South Whittier,” said Whittier County Community Coordinating Council President Ralph Pacheco. “This project has been in process for the past five years, from initial planning stages to securing funding.”

David Stringer, transit manager for County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works said the launch of the shuttle is an important milestone, but that there’s more to do.

“Now, we have the challenges of operating it and meeting community needs,” Stringer said. “We’ve gotten a lot of thank-yous, but it will be really different when they’re riding the shuttle versus looking at a piece of paper now.”

More than 100 people attended Saturday’s transit fare to commemorate the shuttle’s launch. Some came with their children for the bounce house, cotton candy, hot dogs and games, and others came to learn about the shuttle.

Residents can ride the shuttle for 25 cents, and seniors, children and Metro Pass and Transfer holders ride for free.

“This is wonderful,” said Irene Gonzalez, who attended the fare with her husband, Val. “When he’s using the car I can go to the Quad. Twenty-five cents is nothing, it beats $1.25.”

For more information about the South Whittier Shuttle, call (626) 458-5960 or visit www.southwhittiershuttle.info.

Sandy Mazza is a freelancer. She previously worked for Southern California News Group as a city reporter covering Carson and Hawthorne and specializing in features about Los Angeles' growing Silicon Beach tech, bioscience, and aerospace sectors.